Rating: 
Summary: Pointless and Dull
Review: I'm sure I've read worse books, given that I read ten books or more a week, but at the moment I can't bring to mind any other book I've liked less than this one. It fails on so many levels, that one wonders if the author was trying to achieve anything beyond filling some kind of "novel per year" quota.From a completely misleading and disgusting opening scene (we're led to believe it's an abortion, but it isn't -- and I'm not an unusually "queasy" person... I had no problems with any of the scenes in Caleb Carr's novels) to an unclear and unsatisfying conclusion, there was nothing redeeming about this book. The lead character, Ellen Cusak, is a former figure skater, but the author certainly didn't do his homework about the figure skating world. With the exception of a real life skater's name sprinkled here and there ("Nicole" "Brian" "Todd" -- did the writer even bother to learn their last names?), it is clear the author knows nothing about figure skating. One example of this ignorance comes into play when the lead is sent a video tape of a small girl skating a figure 8. "Figures" have been abolished from Olympic and World competition since 1991, and the last "Figure" nationals were held in 1999. It is unlikely that a small child would be learning figures nowadays. So why make this a novel about a figure skater? Ellen could just as well been a rock singer or an actress or even a high school teacher -- any of the previous could have been stalking victims, and very few details in the book would need to be changed. Not that the career of Ellen matters that much. Lynch spends so small an amount of time developing her as a character that I didn't care who was stalking her or why. The few times the reader is allowed inside her head, are not enlightening. Occasionally she begins to suspect that certain moments from her past are causing this stalking, but then she "edits herself" and the author pulls away from her. Oh come on. Perhaps this was supposed to enhance the mystery, but the result was that Ellen comes across as shallow and stupid. Granted, I wasn't expecting literature, but this book doesn't even work as brain candy/entertainment. The plot was too muddy with side characters and tangents (for example, too much time spent on the detective's sister, a character who has absolutely no bearing on the plot) and the characters were too flat to be interesting. If you are looking for a book that gives an accurate and exciting picture of the skating world, read Maynard Thompson's "Dreams of Gold." If you are looking for a good "serial killer/stalker" style thriller, try any of the following: "Silence of the Lambs" (Thomas Harris), "The Alienist" (Caleb Carr), "Montana Skies" (Nora Roberts), "Scarlet Women" by J.D. Christilian, "The Bone Collector" by Jeffrey Deaver, "The Weatherman" by Steve Thayer, or "The Sculptress" by Minette Walters... all of the above are thrillers that are actually thrilling.
Rating: 
Summary: A dark, edgy psychological thriller
Review: I've read all of Patrick Lynch's books and was pleased to see another one out. However I didn't really enjoy this book as much as some of his others. Why not? I'm reading parts thinking "WHAT is going on here" (only to have those questions answered 3/4 of the way thru the book). Hate that, not having a clue what's going on. Also didn't find Ellen/Yelena particularly sympathetic or even very interesting. That makes it very hard to even care what happens to her. The "hero" Pete Golding is a bit more detailed and alot more interesting. He saved the book from 1 star as far as I was concerned. Some of the other reviewers commented on the skating information not being correct. There was so little in this book about skating that she could have been a rock star or actress or anything in the entertainment field for that matter. So for the average reader, I don't think that is a real problem. An OK thriller, not great, not horrible.
Rating: 
Summary: Ok Not Great Thriller
Review: I've read all of Patrick Lynch's books and was pleased to see another one out. However I didn't really enjoy this book as much as some of his others. Why not? I'm reading parts thinking "WHAT is going on here" (only to have those questions answered 3/4 of the way thru the book). Hate that, not having a clue what's going on. Also didn't find Ellen/Yelena particularly sympathetic or even very interesting. That makes it very hard to even care what happens to her. The "hero" Pete Golding is a bit more detailed and alot more interesting. He saved the book from 1 star as far as I was concerned. Some of the other reviewers commented on the skating information not being correct. There was so little in this book about skating that she could have been a rock star or actress or anything in the entertainment field for that matter. So for the average reader, I don't think that is a real problem. An OK thriller, not great, not horrible.
Rating:
Summary: A dark, edgy psychological thriller
Review: Just finished Figure of Eight. My first Patrick Lynch book, and a great read. A kind of stalker story, but with a difference. Keeps you guessing right from the start. Draws you on with leads, intriguing & sometimes downright strange pieces of information, and just when you think maybe you've worked out how all the pieces are going to fit, it changes. Builds the suspense very well, right up to a literally explosive end. Develops strong main characters well too - especially the 'hero' Pete Golding. There are times when you're not sure what Golding's going to do next, or even if he's the good guy - but you can't help liking him and by the end you're with him 100%. I'd like to have gotten a little more into his character, he's strong and complex enough to carry a story. I'd like to see him reappear in another Lynch thriller down the road.
Rating:
Summary: A dark and disturbing story
Review: Once I'd picked up this novel I couldn't put it down. And not just because the plot works or because there's loads of suspense. Mainly I was truly drawn in by the characters, especially Pete Golding. Just when you think you know who you're dealing with and what he's about, he turns around and surprises you. How often can you say that about the hero of a modern thriller? I see on this site some reviewers calling Pete a stock/ conventional character. To you folks, I'd say: take a more careful second look! This is a story with a dark and chilling message. And it's all locked up in that enigmatic Figure of 8!
Rating:
Summary: Do you know anything about skating?
Review: Patrick Lynch doesn't, unfortunately. People seem to love this book or hate it, count me under the ranks of those who hate it. In fact, everyone I know who's read this travesty of fiction hates it. The one thing all the people I know have in common is that we are all skating fans. We all know something about skating... and you would think that a man about to write a novel about a famous skater would consult a *skating* expert? Not Patrick Lynch... all his thank-yous are to medical experts, crime experts and such. He obviously doesn't think one needs to know anything about skating to write a book about a skater. He goes on to prove that ably. Figure of Eight could have as easily been about any famous person: an actress, a musician. Normally, that would indicate a strong, universal story. Not in this case. If you're a skating fan, don't buy this one.
Rating:
Summary: Great dark thriller
Review: Read this on a long flight. Loved it. Dark story, great writing, plenty of twists. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: A creepy, chilling novel with a surprise twist at the end.
Review: The reason that I picked up "Figure of Eight" is that I loved Patrick Lynch's medical thrillers, "Omega" and "Carriers". I have no idea why he abandoned the medical thriller genre at which he excelled. This book is inferior to those earlier works. "Figure of Eight" is about Ellen (formerly Yelena) Cusack, a Russian emigre turned champion figure skater. Although she has somewhat fallen out of the limelight since her glory days, she is trying for a comeback after her recent divorce. Unfortunately, she is getting threatening mail from a stalker and she is very frightened. Pete Golding, a security expert who is known for his hotheaded "shoot first and ask questions later" style, is called in by Ellen's agent to investigate the threat. The book deals not only with the threat, but with an unidenified body found on Ellen's property. The book has an intriguing plot, but the characters do not come to life. Ellen is a remote "ice princess". Pete is a loose cannon who has obvious emotional problems. The stalker is the usual crazy whom you find in these types of thrillers. What does work is the gradual unraveling of the truth about Ellen's past. There are some surprising elements here that are unpredictable. What lifts the book up still more is the truly surpising ending. Usually, thrillers end with melodramatic fireworks, or with a thud. This book has a truly creepy, spine-tingling ending that left me slightly breathless. It is a good touch by Lynch. He does have an important message to convey. The price of being in the public eye is often very high indeed, given the number of emotionally disturbed people who live vicariously through the rich and famous people whom they "admire to death".
Rating:
Summary: A Must Read Thriller
Review: The stars all want private investigator Pete Golding to provide them with protection ever since he killed a stalker about to slash his client, a rising starlet. Pete's boss is not as confident as the Hollywood crowd is about his out-of-control media star. Lenny Mayot hires the firm to guard his client, former Olympic skating superstar Ellen Cusak, from a dangerous but clever stalker The Ice Man, who seems to intimately know Cusak. Lenny demands Pete, who gets the assignment. Pete has always been a fan of Ellen's, but was not prepared for his attraction to her. Meanwhile, the Ice Man sends a video to Ellen and the media that stars a child who looks almost identical to the ice skater. Everyone quickly believes the worst, namely that the frigid Ellen abandoned her child. This costs Ellen her budding Hollywood career and some ice-skating jobs. Though Ellen fires Pete, he continues to protect her by seeking to put an end to her stalker. FIGURE OF EIGHT is a by the book LA noir novel that has been done so many times, no one would claim owning the T-shirt. However, in the capable hands of Patrick Lynch, the story line keeps the reader's attention from start to finish. Pete is a near lunatic, who, if he was not a former cop security guru, would have been an obsessive stalker. Ellen is fabulous prima donna and her agent would out sleaze Nixon. The secondary characters make Southern California shine in it smoggiest of days. Though not anything unique or fresh, FIGURE OF EIGHT is a gold medal tale. Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: A cut above...
Review: This is a fascinating novel. A tight, gripping story, rich in psychological insight, and with a billiant climax. One to read in one sitting!
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